Reform

Rassmussen Reports, the pollster whose surveys of “likely voters” most often show the worst numbers for President Obama and the Democrats, finds support for health care reform spiking since last week.

Fifty-one percent (51%) of all voters nationwide now favor the plan while 46% are opposed. In June , as the public debate was just beginning, [...]

For the most part, today’s Tea Party was harmonious, with the crowds chanting in unison, “No Obamacare” and “You lie” and such. But there were small pockets of counterprotest that led to a few heated debates.
The most elaborate counterprotest came in the form of an a cappella ensemble, dressed in formal wear and posing as [...]

On a Thursday night Republican Governors Association conference call with conservative activists, moderated by Erick Erickson of RedState, Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.) broached the possibility of “asserting the 10th Amendment” to keep Minnesota from fully participating in a health care plan passed by Congress and signed by President Obama. The 10th Amendment reads:
The powers not [...]

Here’s a quick wrap-up of today’s health care news.
Congress came back to Washington today after a month-long break, and it seems like just about everyone has something to say about health care reform.
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, released an 18-page draft summary (PDF) of the committee’s long-awaited “Gang of [...]

The Michigan Messenger’s Todd Heywood reports some strong statements from Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) in support of a government-run health insurance plan to compete with private insurers.
“If we don’t have a strong public option, the bill will never get out of the House,” Conyers said during a Monday night town hall meeting on hate crimes [...]

Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kans.), fresh off the “Great White Hope” controversy of last week, can be seen in this video talking down a woman named Elizabeth Smith who, according to The Associated Press, couldn’t afford insurance for her son. At 1:47, Jenkins takes her question and, sort of jarringly, laughs at it.
SMITH: I want an [...]

The Colorado Independent’s Ernest Luning passes along this rather remarkable quote from Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), speaking earlier today at an event in Colorado.
“This cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it [...]

The Minnesota Independent reports on a health care town hall held yesterday by Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), who has urged her supporters to fast and pray in order to defeat health care reform. The crowd in Lake Elmo, Minn., was mostly friendly — meaning vigorously opposed to President Obama’s agenda — although dissent came from [...]

Glenn Thrush gets the Republican National Committee, via spokeswoman Katie Wright, to walk a few steps back from the health care survey that suggested Democrats might deny care to registered Republicans.
Although the question was inartfully worded, Americans have reason to be concerned about the failure of the Democrats’ health care experiment to adequately protect the [...]

UPDATE: The survey is here.
Kathie Durbin reports on the “2009 Future of American Health Survey” sent out by the Republican National Committee. It’s this part of the survey that’s raising eyebrows:
It has been suggested that the government could use voter registration to determine a person’s political affiliation, prompting fears that GOP voters might be discriminated [...]